Ugly dwarves, spooky stable lads, blood thirsty trolls, shapeshifting creatures, wizards, ghosts and assorted worms not just called Lambton, we look at some of the myths and legends of the North East that continue to entertain to this day.

But how many do you know?

1.The Cauld Lad of Hylton

Hylton Castle (Image: Ben Mills)

In short the ‘Cauld Lad’ is stable boy Robert Skelton, said to haunt the ruins of Hylton Castle in Sunderland, after being killed in the late 16th or early 17th century.

There are, as with many myths, a number of versions. One says Skelton was murdered by Baron Hylton who caught him courting his daughter.

Another said that after being ordered by the baron to prepare his horse for an important journey, Skelton overslept and the enraged baron decapitated the lad, or stabbed him with a nearby pitchfork, or hit him on the back of the head with a riding crop, striking a spot that had been injured the day before, causing a fatal blow.

Skelton’s body was dumped down an unused well but later recovered. The baron was tried for Skelton’s murder, but had an alibi and got off.

Apparently there is a record that Robert Hylton, 13th Baron Hylton was pardoned in 1609.

2. The Simonside Dwarfs

Simonside Hills

This race of ugly dwarfs are also known as Brownmen, Bogles and Duergar, and are linked with the Simonside Hills of Northumberland and whose leader was said to be called Roarie.

Their fashion of choice included lambskin coats, moleskin trousers and shoes, and a hat made of moss stuck with a feather.

They were said to lead travellers astray, especially after dark, often carrying lighted torches to lead them into bogs, then disappear at dawn.

3. The Hedley Kow

Hedley on the Hill, Northumberland

Set in the village of Hedley on the Hill in Northumberland, it is a weirdly cheery tale about the world’s most ‘glass half full’ woman in mythology.

First she finds a pot on the road, full of gold pieces, and decides to drag it home in her shawl.

She drags it for a while, but when she looks back, the pot has become a lump of silver which she decides is actually better than gold, as it is less likely to be stolen, and goes on.

After a bit more dragging she turns to find the silver has turned into a chunk of iron.

Again she looks on the bright side thinking it will be easier to sell.

On she goes and when she turns back a third time, the iron has become a rock. She exclaims how convenient this will be as a doorstop, and happily goes home.

There, the rock is revealed to be the Hedley Kow, a mischievous shapeshifting creature. The creature trots off laughing but the woman is not too put out as she decides how lucky she was to see such a thing in the first place.

4. Jingling Geordie’s Hole

Some say Jingling Geordie is a 17th-century pirate and smuggler who used the cave as a lookout for incoming ships. After robbing the ships he would put the cargo he nicked in a labyrinth of tunnels running beneath the Castle, the jingling bit being caused by the fetters of legcuffs attached to him after his capture which supposedly can still be heard jingling away on some evenings.

Others say that the “Wytche of Tinemouth” lived there, others talk of a wizard (possibly called Harry).

5. The Redcaps

This is one of the scariest tales - about a terrifying race of troll-like creatures of Northumberland and the Borders known as the Redcap.

These goblins always appeared in the form of old men, with bright red hats.

Their caps could only retain the cherished redness by being bathed in the blood of recently murdered human victims.

6. The Lambton worm

In short, John Lambton skipped church to go fishing one day and caught a cursed worm. The worm grew and grew until large enough to wrap itself around a hill - Penshaw Monument hill or Worm Hill - seven times and terrorised the village while John was off fighting in the crusades. When he came back he enlisted the help of a local witch to slay the worm, but failed to follow through on his end of the deal so he and his family were cursed for generations.

7. The Sockburn Worm

Dragons were traditionally represented by the serpent monster known locally as a worm.

The Lambton Worm was the most famous but not the only one.

There was also the Sockburn Worm that laid waste to the County Durham village of that name. It was reputedly slain by Sir John Conyers. The tale is said by many to be the inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s poem Jabberwocky which he wrote while in Croft on Tees and Whitburn.

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8. The Laidly Worm of Spindleston Heugh

Also also known as The Laidly Worm of Bamborough, it is a Northumbrian ballad about a princess who changed into a dragon - the “laidly worm” of the title.

In the Kingdom of Northumbria, a kind king in Bamburgh Castle takes a beautiful but cruel witch as his queen after his wife’s death. The King’s son, Childe Wynd, has gone across the sea but the witch, jealous of the beauty of his daughter Princess Margaret, turns her into a dragon.

Later in the story, the prince returns and, instead of fighting the dragon, kisses it, restoring the princess to her natural form. He then turns the witch-queen into a toad and becomes king.